Congressional Redistricting in Limbo as Filing Deadline Passes

The deadline for Kentuckians to file to run for the U.S. House has passed…with no extension and no agreement on new district maps.

The deadline was 4:00 pm today. And as it passed, state House leaders were still waiting on approval from the Senate on the latest compromise on what the districts should look like.

That approval may not come anytime soon. House Majority Floor Leader Rocky Adkins says there’s no framework for an agreement in place.

House Speaker Greg Stumbo says if the current proposal can’t pass, then no new maps will be approved this session.

“I just told them the map that we have proposed, we feel like it has enough support to pass,” Stumbo said. “But to go back to square one would almost be futile at this point.

The legislature has a few options at this point. They could keep the process closed and let candidates run in the current districts. Or they could go back to work, pass new maps and re-open candidate filings at a later date.

However, the most likely outcome is that someone will sue the legislature over the lack of new maps and the courts will handle the matter.

Senate Republican leaders, the majority in the state Senate, haven’t revealed whether or not they have reached an agreement on the maps.